"GRraawr!! Kressle! What is this treachery!?" The large bald man with the Ustalav accent receives an arrow to the chest. He urges his horse toward from where he saw the arrow fly, while readying his lasso. He sees Vorik dashing out from hiding and keeps going. "Who the -- To arms!", calling back to the others. He glares at Jaestra as he approaches tossing one end of the coiled rope to his other hand...
(move to (N,16)

Hruska licks his lips as he prepares for his target who happens to be his favorite gender to lasso, when Vladimir's duelling sword skips across a couple scales of his armor and finds its way to his unprotected area under the arm.. "These are no bluecloaks! Fall back! *cough* Fall back!"
Round 1Vorik
Hruska
Vladimir
Jaestra
Thugs

The two thugs at the south platform are just now catching on .. They look like they are just realizing they should be getting ready for a fight as Vorik nears them. A pale gaunt human carries a longsword, the other (looks like a larger than average half-orc with a serious astigmatism) reaches for the greataxe strapped to his back. These do not look like a couple of average bandits ..

Noticing the unusual look of the two bandits, Vorik takes a quick step back using the wagon to insure villains can't surround him. With shield raised and hammer poised to strike, the paladin waits for the two to make close the gap. Adding a little fuel to the fire he says to the half-orc, "Well, you're a mighty ugly fellow. Which of the gods did you tick off? Why not step over here and I'll see what I can do about rearranging that mug of yours."

Having been unsuccessful knocking over Vladimir, Hruska leaves himself open as he hurls the loop of is rope around Jaestra. AoO for Vladimir

Lasso from PRD:

Lasso: This thrown weapon is a length of rope with a simple open knot on one end that allows you entangle a foe like you would using a net. The DC to cast a spell while entangled with a lasso is 10 + the spell level being cast. An entangled creature can slip free with a DC 15 Escape Artist check as a full-round action. The lasso has 2 hit points and AC 10. It requires a DC 23 Strength check to break it. On a successful hit, the lasso tightens; to use it again you must spend a standard action sliding the knot to enlarge the loop.

Hruska looked as though he was planning to escape once his catch was secure. Assuming Vladimir was on the ground, he screams out startled as much as injured and releases the rope. Vladimir's second strike finds its way under his foes spasming arm and skewers one too many vital organs. The bandit leader starts to slowly slide off his saddle when the horse helps him off with a disinterested little buck.

The thin human speaks to the bug-eyed half-orc and points to Vladimir .. "You get this one .. I'll handle the swordsman." He then gestures at Vladimir, chants briefly .. and a bright purplish-blue light bolts out of his hand -- striking Vladimir as he approaches. The thin human finishes with a "Heeyah" urging his horse toward his target.

The half-orc charges on his horse, wielding his greataxe. He leans in his saddle to swing as he rides by.

The bug-eyed half-orc's forward momentum is gone, and he finds himself pinned out of position by Vorik's shield .. right before the hammer swings around it -- shattering bone. The half-orc falls from his saddle.

The gaunt human bandit at the edge of the stream hears the fatal crunch of his ally behind him, sees Vladimir "juice up", and starts to rethink his strategy... An arrow fired by Jaestra sinks deep in his right pectoral .. his sword arm goes limp. He lifts his left black-gloved hand and brings it to his mouth as if whispering to a captured bug. He then looks at Vladimir and gestures toward him "Tell her to stop shooting"

Vladimir Will save DC11:

actually DC13, but you get +2 bonus in combat.
fail= you are fascinated, and view him 'indifferently' and do not see his request as unreasonable.

rolled this guy's spells randomly .. first time I've used hypnotism. This guy would need a std action to dismiss spell before Vladimir could talk. For continuity's sake we'll just say he was charmed, not hypnotized.

Where did the casting bandit move to? From where he started the round he would have to be a 12th Level caster to target Vladimir with either spell.

If he moved on his mount, he would have to make a Concentration check (DC 10 + Level of the spell) or lose the spell due to vigorous motion as described on page 206 of the Core Rulebook.

If the spell was hypnotism the effect would not take place until his turn on Round 2 as Hypnotism has a one round casting time (or later if he had to move to target Vladimir).

If the spell was Charm Person, Vladimir would get a +5 bonus to the save (irrelevant in this case), and would become friendly, while still retaining my own will to say what I will (as long as I am sticking to treating the caster as friendly. Odds are I would say something along the lines of: "Hold on, cease fire. He is not our enemy."

Sorry to go all "Rules Lawyer" on you, just trying to figure out what is going on. Please advise.

Hearing Vladimir's shout as the half-orc falls to the ground, Vorik is baffled for a second saying a quick, "What the....his partner just tried to take my head off?!"

He checks to make sure the half-orc is out of the fight for good, and then grabs the reins of the horse. In a gruff, clear voice he says, "If you be surrendering mage, dismount and don't utter a word. Otherwise, we'll see if you fair any better against Astridonoir than your friend over there."

The bandit looks around .. then speaks quietly to Vladimir .. "Tell them not to worry .. I'll be back..." He gives a weak smile .. crooked teeth outlined in red as he spits out his own blood, and starts turning his horse toward the way from which he came. He speaks gravely to Vorik, "I've pledged my life to the Stag Lord, it is no longer mine to offer..." and starts to urge his horse forward.

Seeing the mage turn, Vorik attempts to quickly mount the captured horse in order to go after the fleeing bandit. Unable to get the skittish horse under control easily, he looses a few precious seconds getting in the saddle, but then moves to engage the mage.

Shouting quickly to Jaestra he says, "He's not surrendering, take him down if you can."

Vorik's swing misses and the bandit slips away.. he looks back to check his lead on his pursuers, when an arrow comes from his blindside -- piercing his throat. He falls from the saddle, and the horse slows then stops a few yards away.
Vladimir has a brief flash of concern for the bandit before the spell effect ends completely.

Finally shaking the effects of the bandit's charm spell, Vladimir realizes the battle is over. "I am sorry for my behavior." he says to Vorik and Jaestra. "I...I'm just not sure what just happened there, perhaps an enchantment spell of some sort, or at least I think I remember Astavos describing those sort of thing that way."

Seeing the bandit fall, Vorik breathes a quick sigh of relief and gives Jaestra a smiling wave. Then, hopping down from his mount he wrangles the other mans horse and wraps the reins to a nearby tree. Seeing no other threats, he'll help drag the bodies closer to camp and do a quick search for any valuables or useful goods.

With the search finished, he hands a couple of shovels to the two gnomes saying, "You two can start earning your keep by digging the graves for these three. We wouldn't want their filthy carcasses to attract any wild beasts."

His eyes taking in all of the horses recovered so far, Vorik says to Jaestra and Vladimir with a chuckle, "Well if nothing else, we've the beginnings of a decent horse ranching outfit."

Seeing the fleeing bandit drop to the ground, I relax, bend down and pick up my sword. I stand up straight and sheath it, then place "GoldFire" over my back. Seeing Vorik wave I blush, but am distracted by Vladimir's speaking, "Don't worry Mr Vladimir ... could I call you Vlad? I have heard those magicks can be quite dangerous, it was a good thing that he did not tell you to attack us."

I am distracted again, this time by Vorik speaking to the Gnomes, "Talking about attracting, I had better go and disarm those traps." I walk over to the traps and carefully disarm them, bringing them back into the camp already triggered. I place them next to all the gear by the fire. Looking to Vorik as he jokes about the horses, "The beginnings, yes, but we would need to build a stable to house them all, unless we were to sell them to Mr Oleg and Miss Svetlana, or give them to us as they were so gracious to offer us free lodgings the other night. Maybe once we have completed our charter, we could set up a small school? You could teach people how to ride, I could show people the ways of traps and teach them the proper use of them and Mr Vladimir could teach students the art of combat? I think that sounds quite peaceful and hard work ..." I look as if I am far away in thought at the idea I have been speaking of.

"Don't worry Mr Vladimir ... could I call you Vlad? I have heard those magicks can be quite dangerous, it was a good thing that he did not tell you to attack us."

"Vlad? I do not see why not. You certainly wouldn't be the first to call me that." he says with a smile.

"I do not believe you would have been in any danger should he have told me to attack you or Vorik. It was more of a sensation that the mage was a trusted friend, rather than an ability to control my will."

Dieter dismounts from his horse, obviously cramped and sore from the long ride. He grimaces as he stretches and dusts himself. "A bed would be most welcome, Goodman Leveton. The road does not agree with me this time of year." He pauses, briefly processing what he just heard and looking Oleg in the eyes. "Bandits? This far north? I knew the River Kingdoms has been rife with them for years, but this close to the Rostland Plains? Tell me what has happened."

"Well it started several months back .. whole mess of em strolled in, bold as brass.. Stole most of my supplies, and physically harassed me and my wife. After that, they returned every month .. This morning, however, the other charter carriers were ready for em. Took em out in seconds, and then went to clear out their camp in the woods."

"Then we have come just in time. Come, Ser Garess! Bring Loomis and Mauersberger, we haven't time to rest. Grab the captive bandit and bring him along. He will show us where to go. It is time you earned your keep." Despite visible weariness, Dieter remounts his horse. "Goodman Leveton, if the charter-bearers return, tell them we are heading toward the camp and likely missed them in the journey. We will return immediately upon reaching the camp and ascertaining their safety."

Kesten's face is difficult to read ... after a moment he nods "Loomis, get the wagon unloaded, and get our interim shelter ready for our return. Goodman Oleg, bring us this captive bandit. Mauersberger, you're with us.. the bandit is your responsibility."
Oleg brings out a young man, missing a few fingers ... he appears human other than a very slight point to his ears. After twenty minutes of preparation, you are ready to ride. Budgie the bandit pointing the way south to and around the outskirts of the woods.

I pick up the silver amulet, "This looks just like the one we found on the others ... Do you think this Stag Lord gives them to his men, so people know they are his? Could they help with getting us to see him with less resistance?" I pull the silver amulet that I am wearing up for everyone to see the similarities. Unfortunately as the string is not long, it only moves a little amount before stopping. So people wishing to spot any differences would have to lean in close ... if there are any differences.